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The Greatcoats are travelling magistrates bringing justice to all . . . or at least they were, before they watched the Dukes impale their King's head on a spike. Now the land's heroes are reviled as traitors, their Greatcoats in tatters.

Facio, Kest and Brasti have been reduced to working as mercenaries, but when they find their employer dead - and are forced to watch as the killer plants evidence framing them for the murder - they realise things are about to get even worse.

For the royal conspiracy that began with overthrowing an idealistic young king is spreading to Rijou, the most corrupt city in the land, and the life of a young girl hangs in the balance.

When every noble is a tyrant and every knight is a thug, the only thing you can really trust is a traitor's blade.

Biographical Notes

Sebastien de Castell had just finished a degree in Archaeology when he started work on his first dig. Four hours later he realised how much he hated archaeology and left to pursue a very focused career as a musician, ombudsman, interaction designer, fight choreographer, teacher, project manager, actor and product strategist. After a year in the Netherlands, he has recently returned to Vancouver, Canada, where he lives with his wife and two belligerent cats.

Other details

ISBN:
9781782066750

Publication date:
04 Sep 2014

Page count:
384

An energetic, fun adventure that puts the "musk" back in "musketeer." Guaranteed to increase household swashbuckling by 100%. — Library Journal

Each bloody encounter [is] described with meticulous detail . . . Traitor's Blade is the entertaining story of how the greatcoats rose and fell, and how they could rise again — SFX

One hell of a good book — Conn Iggulden

Fantastic from the first sentence to the last. Combining old-school swashbuckling action with contemporary characters and a good dose of grit, these books are the rarest of things, great rollicking fun combined with an emotional punch . . . Sebastien, write faster! — John Gwynne, Author of the Faithful and the Fallen

With a tip of his hat at Alexandre Dumas, Sebastien de Castell make a fine first impression in this entertaining debut . . . Traitor's Blade is a bunch of fun from one cover to the other — Tor.com

It made me laugh out loud and it made me shed an occasional tear. It dragged me right in to the world of Tristia. Traitor's Blade is a great book and I'm already looking forward to reading the next in the series — Fantasy Faction

Don't hesitate to buy this if you love a great hero and story . . . What a voice! What story-telling brio! If you love Dumas, or Game of Thrones or The False Prince this is the swashbuckling fantasy for you. — Amanda Craig, author of Hearts And Minds

Traitor's Blade provides swashbuckling fan service, and has fun along the way, but it also packs a sneaky emotional punch as well. Dumas would be proud. — Pornokitsch

If you love adventure, fantasy history, sword fights, nobility, and cutting and dark humor, Traitor's Blade should be right up your alley — Fanboy Comics

A page turner in the true sense of the phrase . . . Witty, romantic and atmospheric in the way of great adventure stories, the Greatcoats series looks set to be a thoroughly enjoyable one — British Fantasy Society

Sebastien De Castell has firmly planted his name on my radar as one of the best debut Fantasy authors this year ... I enjoyed Traitor's Blade immensely and can't wait for the next book and whatever the author comes up with in the future. Certainly a book that I highly recommend, to anyone! — Draumr Kopa Blog

Traitor's Blade may well end up going down as one of the strongest first fantasy novels of recent times - it's an absolute stunner that you can't afford to miss. — The Founding Fields

Every so often, a debut novel comes along that knocks your expectations out of the park. Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora is one of those novels. Peter V. Brett's The Painted Man is another. Sebastien de Castell's Traitor's Blade needs to be added to that list. I loved this — Civilian Reader

Brilliantly conceived, cleverly executed and a whole bucket of fun, this will be one of the most entertaining novels you read this year — Liz Loves Books

I loved loved loved Traitor's Blade. I would recommend it to everyone. Seriously, this is one excellent and remarkably entertaining book! Read it — Bibliosanctum

Traitor's Blade is not to be missed. It might even be the best début of 2014. The mesmerising plot and imaginative world, not to mention the awesome characters, will entertain even the most discerning of readers. — Speculating on SpecFic.

One of the best debut novels I've had the pleasure of reading . . . Read this! You'll love it — Drunken Dragon Reviews

Pretty darn awesome — Book Geek Says

The Three Musketers meets Game of Thrones, Traitor's Blade is the most delightful fun . . . marks the perfect start to a swashbuckling adventure series . . . A thoughtful book [that will] remind you that there are a lot of things in this world worth fighting for — fantasy-smorgasbord

A terrific read. I enjoyed reading it very, very much. A must read! — The Book Plank

Packed with humour, emotion and great character camaraderie . . . Jo Fletcher Books have given the genre a real treat. I want to join the Greatcoats — Parmenion Books

I was hooked from page 3 . . . The humor, the swashbuckling, the humor WHILE swashbuckling . . . If you're an action oriented reader like I am this will tickle you pink. 5 Stars — Not Yet Read

This is a great book from an equally great writer . . . As long as de Castell keeps writing these books, I will keep reading them — Utter Biblio

Traitor's Blade is a very polished debut with a solid plot, great characters, a lovely world, and most importantly, it exudes a sense of fun that is infectious ... Traitor's Blade comes highly recommended — A Fantastical Librarian

I've rarely enjoyed swordplay and fight scenes in a book as much as I enjoyed these . . . Sebastien de Castell's offering up one that's most certainly worth your time — Over the Effing Rainbow

An excellent read [with] powerful narrative and many twists and turns . . . takes its place in my top 25 of the year to date — Fantasy Book Critic

Had me enthralled, and as I started to write my review I found myself reading huge chunks of it over again. Yep, this is my kind of book — And then I read a Book

Fact is this book is just fun. The witty banter alone makes it worth reading. — Fantasy Review Barn

I laughed and smiled, and felt the tension, and the emotional struggles the characters faced. I let go of myself and really sank into one intensely amazing, incredibly well realized world — Bookworm Blues

Traitor's Blade is a constant blur of movement and action . . . Full of wit, intrigue, action and violence, it's a wonderful introduction to a new fantasy world and the people that inhabit it. And, from what we see on our first visit, there are plenty of reasons to come back for more — Reader Dad

Traitor's Blade is a compelling read. The story is complex and with plenty of threads ... The fight scenes are detailed and you almost feel as if you are there, dodging the blades. I really enjoyed this book — Dragons and Fairy Dust

De Castell has produced a wonderfully inventive, thoroughly entertaining story and a fascinating world in which to set it — Nerds of A Feather

Hooked me from the get-go with mystery and the promise of a new fantasy world. It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me angry, and it made me so incredibly frustrated - but in a good way! It had so many twists and turns I couldn't even begin to guess what would happen, and I was glued to the book until I found out — Panda Cat Reads

An amazing debut and one of my favourite books of the year. If the quality of the series continues this might just be one of my all-time favorites — Speculative Book Review

Battles with evil dukes, vicious and cruel aristocratic ladies and politics to rival anything GRRM has conceived, this truly is an epic tale — Seans Blog Now

This book is truly brilliant. — Junipers Jungle

There is plenty of action and intrigue to satisfy all, political maneuvering is matched by deeds of great heroism, and Falcio's story will definitely leave the reader wanting more. — SF Book

I just read the second book in Scott Lynch's Gentleman Bastard series and I felt like this book contained almost everything that was fun in Red Seas Under Red Skies but cut out all of the slow stuff. They both had a wonderful adventurous feel but this was far tighter, sleeker and more exciting and was a complete and entire book — A Reading Machine

Falcio's story will definitely leave the reader wanting more. — SF Book Reviews

Traitor's Bladedelivers on many levels. It was fun, action-packed, had some great characters, and a stellar ending that leaves the reader craving more. — A Bitter Draft

'The Three Musketeers meets Game of Thrones, Traitor's Blade is the most delightful fun ... [should] be high up on anyone's list of 2014 Fantasy books' fantasy-smorgasbord. — smorgasbord

'Traitor's Blade is a very polished debut with a solid plot, great characters, a lovely world, and most importantly, it exudes a sense of fun that is infectious ... [it] comes highly recommended' A Fantastical Librarian. — A Fantastical Librarian

'An excellent read [with] powerful narrative and many twists and turns ... Traitor's Blade is the first 'new' fantasy of 2014 that met and even exceeded my expectations' Fantasy Book Critic. — Fantasy Book Critic

'Brilliantly conceived, cleverly executed and a whole bucket of fun, this will be one of the most entertaining novels you read this year' Liz Loves books. — Liz Loves books

'An all-round brilliant fantasy debut, and one of the best I've read in a decade ... Every so often, a debut novel comes along that knocks your expectations out of the park. Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora is one of those novels. Peter V. Brett's The Painted Man is another. Sebastien de Castell's Traitor's Blade needs to be added to that list. I loved this' Civilian Reader. — Civilian Reader

'Traitor's Blade is something new in the fantasy genre ... Left me thinking about it for days afterwards, the style, the plot, the characters, and most of all wishing for the next book in the series ... I want to join the Greatcoats!' Parmenionbooks. — Parmenionbooks

'If this isn't your most anticipated debut novel of 2014, then you're doing it wrong. Traitor's Blade may well end up going down as one of the strongest first fantasy novels of recent times - it's an absolute stunner that you can't afford to miss' The Founding Fields. — Founding Fields

'With a tip of his hat to Alexandre Dumas, Sebastien de Castell makes a fine first impression in this entertaining debut ... Traitor's Blade is a bunch of fun from one cover to the other' Tor.com. — Tor.com

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